Forever
by Electriccables
Summary: Sweet lil JxK thing. Yaoi. Don't like Don't read.


**Forever**

"Hey, Fuuchoin!" somebody was shouting after Kazuki. He turned round to see some guy he didn't know walking quickly towards him.

"Fuuchoin," the young man repeated his name, "Guess what?"

"What?" was Kazuki's uninspired response.

"I know people who want you dead."

"Why's that then?"

"Heir to the Fuuchoin clan. That's you, right?"

"Yeah."

"Then why do you bloody think they want you dead?"

Kazuki shrugged and began to walk away. Like he cared what this guy did. He was nothing, Kazuki could tell that right away. He was just some guy who thought he was hard. Whoever he was working for had told him to get rid of Kazuki and, being young, arrogant and new to the assassination trade, he had believed it would be a cinch. It was probably his first job. He had made the mistake of underestimating his opponent. It was the first time he'd made that mistake. And it would be the last.

"Hey, Fuuchoin! Don't you walk away from me!"

"I don't know who you are," Kazuki said turning to face his opponent, "but I suggest you let me walk away and forget we ever met."

"No way! I've come here for one reason and one reason alone. And I'm _not_ letting you retreat."

The assassin pulled a gun from inside his jacket. Kazuki laughed quietly.

"Oh, is that how you planned to kill me? Very uninspiring. I've come up against members of the Brain Trust – some of the best fighters in the world. I've defended the Lightning Emperor from those who wished to do him harm. And you think you can take me out with a simple gun?"

The assassin's finger was on the trigger, the gun pointed at Kazuki's head as if held by an expert rather than someone with no experience at all.

Kazuki reached for the bells he kept in his long hair. With a simple flick of his wrist, the gun was sent flying from his opponent's hand.

"What the fuck?" the assassin queried.

"You're out of your league," Kazuki told him simply, "I suggest you leave now. Tell whoever you're working for not to send a boy to do a man's work in future."

Content that he had disarmed the situation, and unwilling to cause any undue harm to the young man, Kazuki began to walk away.

"Fuuchoin! I'm not done talking to you!" he shouted after him.

"Yes you are. This conversation is over."

"No way, Fuuchoin! Get the hell back here!"

Kazuki turned back briefly, intending to tell the young man once again that he did not wish to continue the fight. The words caught in his throat as eight needles flew past him. He could only watch on as the needles found their target – the assassin's chest. They formed a perfect circle around his heart. The wounds would be fatal, Kazuki had seen them the same injury so many times. And there was only one man who could throw the needles with such precision.

"Juubei," Kazuki said loudly, "Did you have to?"

"He intended to harm you, Kazuki," Juubei said simply as he stepped from the shadows.

"I had it covered. There was absolutely no need to kill him."

"I swore to protect you. This man intended to harm you. He had to die for your protection."

Kazuki sighed and turned towards his lifelong friend.

"If something happened to you, I'd never forgive myself."

"I know, Juubei. But I can look after myself."

"I never said otherwise. But when we were serving in the Limitless Fortress, there was danger all around. I had to protect you constantly there."

"And old habits die hard, huh?"

"Yes."

"That guy wasn't a worthy opponent. You took his life without a moment's consideration. He hadn't even seen you."

"Any enemy of yours is an enemy of mine. It was best to take him out now rather than wait for him to become more of a threat."

"That is not how it works and you know it."

"I suppose you're right," Juubei submitted, "I'm sorry."

Don't be," Kazuki said shaking his head slightly, "Let's just get out of here."

The two of them walked together. A long time ago, Juubei had sworn that he would protect Kazuki no matter what. It was cute, Kazuki had thought at the time, but Juubei had simply taken it too far lately. He was practically killing anyone who Kazuki so much as spoke to. It was strange.

"Juubei?"

"Yes?"

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine."

"Why are you being so… defensive?"

"Because I swore to…"

"Yeah, but you never used to go so far. There was no reason to take his life!"

"I just wanted to make sure you'd be safe."

"Come on, Juubei! Just listen to yourself! All this 'I swore to protect you' was cute once. It was a nice little thing when I was nine and you were ten but we're all grown up and it's time for you to start letting me fight my own battles."

Juubei said nothing for a while and simply looked at Kazuki.

"Well, if that's how you feel," he said eventually, "If you don't want me around any more I won't burden you with my presence."

With that, he left.

"Juubei? Hey, Juubei, I didn't mean it like that. Juubei?"

But he was walking away. And he didn't look back.

"Where's Mr Protector tonight then?" Ban asked Kazuki that evening. Kazuki, after Juubei had walked away from him, had met up with Ban and Ginji. They were having coffees in the Honky Tonk.

"Dunno," Kazuki replied, "He went off somewhere."

"Back off up the mountains to discipline himself?" Ban probed, "What did he do this time? Allow you to break a fingernail?"

"No. Nothing like that. I kinda told him to fuck off."

"Why?"

Kazuki told the Get Backers what had happened.

"Why don't we help?" Ginji suggested once he was done, "We're the Get Backers! We'll find him for you."

"Yeah," Ban agreed, "Just don't think you'll get out of the fee just because you're a mate."

"It's ok," Kazuki refused their offer, "I have an idea for where he might be."

"Hey, Kazu?" Ginji said suddenly, "You do know why he's been acting so defensive lately, don't you?"

"No. Why? Do you?"

"Yeah, I know. He told me a couple of weeks ago."

"Really? What did he say?"

"Well…" Ginji began hesitantly.

"Tell him, Ginji," Ban encouraged.

"Ok. Kazu, the truth is… Juubei's in love with you."

Kazuki's eyes widened. "You're joking," he said. Ginji shook his head. "Oh jeez… why didn't I see that?"

With that, Kazuki ran from the café to follow up his hunch on Juubei's location.

"Nicely done, Ginji," Ban said once he'd gone.

Ginji smiled, "I just saw a great opportunity there."

"Yeah. It was a pretty sweet chance. Hope it works."

"Oh, it will. Knowing Kazu he'll mention it as soon as he finds Juubei. And then… love is in the air."

Kazuki found Juubei right where he expected him to be – just outside of the Limitless Fortress. Juubei went there sometimes when he wanted to remember his past and consider his future.

"Kazuki," Juubei said the name upon his arrival.

"Juubei… I know why you've been so defensive lately."

_I doubt it_ Juubei thought. Aloud he said, "And why's that?"

"Ginji told me what you told him."

"Ginji? What does he know?"

"You told him that you love me."

"I did no such thing."

"Well he told me that you said…"

"I didn't tell Ginji anything like that."

"Oh…"

"However, that doesn't make it any less true."

"You mean…?"

"I love you, Kazuki. More than anything else in the world."

Kazuki couldn't keep the tears from his eyes. "I love you too," he said.

Juubei reached out and pulled Kazuki's body close to his own.

"You're perfect," he whispered, "Everything about you is just so perfect. Please let me keep protecting you."

"We'll look after each other," Kazuki promised, "Forever."

Meanwhile, Ban and Ginji watched the romantic scene unfolding from a distance.

"Mission accomplished," Ban said.

Ginji smiled and nodded.

"They'll both be happy now. Forever."


End file.
